Wise Counsel

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading, titled Wise Counsel, was written by Katara Patton. While attending seminary, I was working full-time.

Add to that a chaplaincy rotation and an internship at a church. I was busy. When my father visited me, he said, you're going to have a breakdown. I shrugged it off as his warning, thinking he was just of another generation and didn't understand goal setting.

I didn't have a breakdown, but I did experience a very rough dry season in which I fell into depression. Since then, I've learned to listen to warnings, especially from loved ones, more carefully. That reminds me of Moses' story in the book of Exodus. He too was diligently working, serving as Israel's judge, yet he chose to listen to his father-in-law's warning. Jethro wasn't in the thick of things, but he loved Moses and his family and could see trouble ahead. Perhaps that's why Moses was able to listen to Jethro and heed his advice. Moses set up a system for capable men from all people to take on the smaller disputes, and he took on the more difficult cases.

Because he listened to Jethro, rearranged his work, and entrusted others to shoulder the load, he was able to avoid burnout during that season of life. Many of us take our work for God, our families, and others seriously, passionately even, but we still need to heed the advice of trusted loved ones and to rely on the wisdom and power of God in all we do. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Exodus chapter 18, verses 13 through 22. The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?

Moses answered him, Because the people come to me to seek God's will, whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and instructions. Moses' father-in-law replied, What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you. You cannot handle it alone.

Listen now to me, and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to Him. Teach them His decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. But select capable men from all people, men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain, and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times. But have them bring every difficult case to you, the simple cases they can decide themselves.

That will make your load lighter because they will share it with you. Let's pray. Almighty God, thank you for allowing us to serve you in many, many ways. As we passionately care for others, teach us to also work wisely so that we'll have energy to do what you want us to do. Thank you, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today. My name is Alisha Reisinger, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.